


Love Never Dies

by grimmpuppyandkitty



Category: Phantom - Susan Kay, Phantom of the Opera - Lloyd Webber
Genre: Aside from a couple of characters, F/M, It shares the same title as the 'sequel' but it has exactly nothing in common with it, Modern AU
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-12
Updated: 2020-12-12
Packaged: 2021-03-11 03:48:24
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,872
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28018746
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/grimmpuppyandkitty/pseuds/grimmpuppyandkitty
Summary: They dated in the past, until something happened that tore them apart forever. They both moved on- her lacking everything that she'd ever wanted and him having what he never thought he could. However, they're equally unhappy. Christine is a teacher who recently broke off a stagnant relationship and Erik is a married man in a failing relationship. What happens when they reunite?
Relationships: Christine Daaé/Erik | Phantom of the Opera, Minor Raoul de Chagny/Meg Giry, Soon to be past Erik/Original female character, past Christine Daae/original male character
Comments: 8
Kudos: 13





	1. Déjà vu

**Author's Note:**

> Erik's last name won't be Destler as I no longer care for that last name when it comes to him.
> 
> The first chapter is rather short, but they should hopefully become longer.

The morning had been going pretty slow for Christine, her students were already pretty hyper even if the first bell hadn’t even rang yet. But she supposed it was to be expected, teaching a group of third graders and all. She’d always wanted to be singing in operas, but she knew those dreams would never come true. Even if someone in the past had approved and pushed her to follow her dreams, the man she’d thought might’ve been the one had incredibly different ideals. Garrett had been convinced that the arts wouldn’t pay the bills. He’d ensured that she’d wasted years on him- with talks of marriage that had never actually come true in the slightest. She’d been lucky that she’d cut ties when she did- because she did want to eventually have children of her own.

She was broken out of her thoughts when the secretary led a small girl into her room. “Miss Daae? This is your new student, Kristie Dubois.” The kindly old woman explained and she found herself nodding absentmindedly. The last name was oddly familiar, but she decided that was because it was a fairly common last name. It couldn’t have anything to do with...him. Nothing at all. That was what she thought, at least. Then she’d seen Kristie’s eyes. They were a shade of amber. An eye color she’d only seen once before.

“Hello, Kristie! Why don’t you introduce yourself to the class and have a seat?” Christine asked once the secretary had left and she’d managed to shake that ...startling thought off. She wouldn’t allow her mind to drift back to him. She couldn’t allow it. It would hurt far too much. Especially when one could suppose that he was the one that got away. He’d been on her mind pretty often, even when she was with Garrett.

Kristie blushed and shuffled her way to the front of the class and fiddled with her fingers. “I prefer to be called Kris and I enjoy hearing my papa play piano when he’s not at work.” She admitted shyly before walking all the way to the back of the class. She plopped down there, ignoring the looks she was getting. Christine mentally cooed over the adorable display but she didn’t make a big deal out of it.

The rest of the day went somewhat slowly and by the end of the day, Christine was ready to go home. Especially with the unwelcomed memories of him. However, she was a professional and she would not take it out on Kristie. It wasn’t her fault that she had such a striking resemblance to him. The only thing that differed was the hair color. It was a darker shade of brown, but brown nonetheless. However, she couldn’t go home yet as she was waiting for someone to pick the little girl in question up. The poor girl didn’t ride a bus.

Almost two hours later, Christine was getting ready to call home when a man in a suit rushed up to them. He looked as if he’d ran across the whole parking lot and he was definitely breathing as if he had as well. It took him a few minutes to catch his breath and once he had, he offered Christine a sheepish smile. “I’m sorry mademoiselle… my wife was supposed to-” He stopped short, the woman had looked up at him with big blue eyes and he suddenly realized just who he was talking to. Fate had a sick sense of humor, it seemed.

“Erik….” Christine breathed. There was no denying it. She’d know this man anywhere. Even if he looked haggard and exhausted- in more ways than one… there was no doubt that this was the same man that had slipped through her fingers.

“Christine…” Erik responded dumbly, his mouth opening and closing as he searched for something to say. Unfortunately, his daughter had other ideas. She immediately fisted her hand into the material of his suit jacket.

“Papa… how do you know her?” Kris questioned innocently, turning her little head this way and that- almost resembling a confused puppy.

Erik stumbled over his words as he tried to find a way to explain while reality dawned on Christine. Things had changed. Even if she still longed for the man in front of her, deep down, he had moved on. His daughter and the mentions of a wife were more than proof of that. She had to remain professional so as to avoid getting her hopes up. 

“I understand, sir. Please take your daughter and head on home. I’ve had a long day and I’d like to get closer to ending it.” Christine tried to joke with a small smile, pretending she didn’t see the small flash of hurt in those beautiful eyes of his. 

“Of course… come along, Krissy, I’ll teach you how to play your favorite song.” Erik bargained and the little girl followed happily.


	2. Hell is real

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lets see how things are for our dear gremlin.

If Erik had decided to take the long way home, it was no one’s business but his own. He had a lot to think about, anyways. Such as what a cruel mistress fate was, to bring Christine back into his life after all these years. While he most definitely loved Claudia at first… things had fallen apart. Surprisingly it had little to do with the love he still harbored for his old flame. They just didn’t… mesh well at all. Their daughter being conceived was perhaps the driving force behind the proposal and Claudia’s acceptance of it.

That was probably more than a little surprising when one considered how little interest in Kristie his wife had now. Claudia had loved doting on the little girl when she was a baby and she could do whatever she wished with her. The moment she could start complaining and expressed a distaste for the frilly dresses that she tried to force her into, she was done.

Christine would’ve been a good mother. He just knew it. But unfortunately, he’d never find out. She probably had a nice husband or fiancée. Though… he somehow doubted it. The Christine he knew had never expressed any desire to be stuck in a dead end job. She definitely hadn’t mentioned wanting to be a teacher. All she used to talk about was becoming a singer. He knew she had the pipes for it… She probably still did. But if that was the case, why would she settle for this? He shook it off. It didn't matter. It wasn't his business, not any more. 

He pulled into the driveway and he heaved a sigh. What horrifying nightmare was awaiting him today? Perhaps Claud would be doing something somewhat respectable for once? Maybe there was a relevant and important reason she’d forgotten about their child for two whole hours? Did he even care? Could he even muster the energy for yet another argument? He wasn’t sure he could. He was exhausted… and he had the feeling it was more than just his shitty sleeping habits getting to him.

He lingered for a few minutes, playing with the idea of just not coming home tonight. It wasn’t like Kristie would be too upset. She was well aware that her mother didn’t seem to care about her. There had been an admittedly heartbreaking conversation between himself and his daughter last night. How could he explain to someone as young as Kris? It wasn’t as if he could just tell her that it was unlikely that her mama cared about anyone aside from herself.

Before he could come to a decision fully, Kristie had the car door open and was rushing to go inside. Though he hadn’t fully registered what his daughter had said, he knew it had something to do with Ayesha. She adored playing with the little cat and he couldn’t blame her. Ayesha was the sweetest thing in the house, aside from herself.

Erik sighed once more and followed after, fully intent on making good with his promise. He had said he’d teach her how to play her favorite song and he was going to do it, everything else be damned. However the moment he stepped inside, he nearly bumped into Kristie. He didn’t have to wait long to find out why she was frozen in front of the door. He could hear the moans coming from the bedroom as well. They weren’t just feminine, either.

Erik reached out to rest a hand on her shoulder when he regained his composure, “Come on. Why don’t I drop you off at the library. Your mama and I need to talk. I’ll pick you up in an hour or so.” He offered gently.

“Alright!” Kris perked up almost immediately and he guided her back out of the house. The drive there was filled with bargaining. Erik relented, agreeing he’d pick her up in two and a half hours instead. It was impossible to deny her anything, especially with the less than stellar mothering that she received. 

The drive back home had been sullen and tense. Though he couldn’t say outwardly that he loved Claudia as much as he once had, having her invite a strange man into their bed when she was supposed to be picking up their daughter was something that both angered and hurt him. It was the final straw. That’s all there was to it. He couldn’t continue this little game of hers any longer.

Thankfully, by the time that he walked in this time they’d be done for quite a while. He bumped into Claudia, wearing nothing more than her fluffy pink bathrobe. Perhaps she’d been about to check the surroundings to make sure that no one would see her little boy toy leaving. Sadly, that plan had blown up in her face. Before he could speak, Claudia had regained most of her composure. “Where is our daughter? Don’t tell me you forgot about her. The girl is probably terrified!” She scolded, as if she had any right to do so.

“As if you care. If you really must know, I picked her up while you were too busy being a slut. Just so you know? Our daughter heard you when she walked in. Way to fucking go. She’s at the library now.” Erik drawled, shoving past her- though he was careful to avoid knocking her down.

“How dare you talk to me that way!” Claudia exclaimed, following after him. Her outrage was made even more ironic thanks to the half-dressed man scurrying out of the house. Erik simply arched an eyebrow, gesturing towards the door. He didn’t even have to speak to make his point.

“My point has been made for me. Now.. why don’t we talk about where we’re going from here. We should’ve had this discussion a long time ago.” Erik stated coldly, taking a seat.

Claudia’s green eyes widened and she glanced around the room, searching for something to get her out of this situation. When she found nothing that could help, she blurted the first thing that came to mind. “Couples counseling sounds more ideal than a divorce! We have to at least try and stay together for Kris. You know it’d crush her if we separated.” She implored.

Erik was torn.


End file.
